Pamela Smith, Verified Voting


USA Insecure Election Map

Many states use insecure voting systems.

Help us work with these states to beef up their election security.

 

Early voting is right around the corner.  More US voters than ever before will be voting on paper ballot systems that can be recounted and checked for accuracy. But there’s more work to be done, and it’s vital that we do all we can to ensure the security of our votes.

Five states will use electronic voting machines that don’t produce a paper record statewide and several others will use at least some paperless machines.  Although that won’t change in time for this election, there’s still time for these states take certain key steps to limit security risks; we’ve been hearing from some election officials that they are going the extra mile this year.  

Verified Voting has been busier than ever, promoting best election practices and responding to the elevated media interest in election security…And we need your help to keep this work going.  

Will you help safeguard our election with a gift today?

Your gift will enable us to work with election officials and promote important security steps in states like Pennsylvania, Virginia, South Carolina, and Georgia, where paperless electronic machines are still used:

  • Test all machines, not just a sample, ahead of time, before Election Day.
  • Provide enough backup paper ballots on hand in case of machine failures.
  • Make sure poll workers know when to deploy paper ballots to prevent long lines.

Beyond voting machines, we are also recommending states review the security of voter registration databases, which were breached this summer in two states, Arizona and Illinois, whether with the help of DHS or in-state experts.  We’re on record with best practices for ensuring all votes are accounted for and each vote is counted exactly once, and for ensuring equipment is never connected to the internet.

We’re pivoting to our work as part of the Election Protection Coalition supporting voters and those who respond to voters at the national call centers for Election Day hotlines 1-866-OUR-VOTE, 1-888-VE-Y-VOTA, and 1-888-API-VOTE. We work to provide training on the kinds of technology issues that may arise on Election Day and to help ensure voters are not disenfranchised by equipment malfunctions or failures. Our comprehensive voting system map is part of that work.

Help us follow through on this important work, with a gift right now.

We’re also engaging at the federal level, promoting the possibility of designating election systems as Critical Infrastructure, highlighting the risks and compromise to ballot secrecy of Internet voting, and helping agencies like the Election Assistance Commission and the National Institute of Standards and Technology in shaping strong election security standards.

With your support, we’ll do all we can to keep our election secure.  

We can do this, together.

Thank you for all you do.

– Pam

Pamela Smith, President

Verified Voting

9/8/16

P.S. – You may be able to double your gift! When you make a gift, you can check to see if your employer has a matching gifts program. Look for “double the donation” box on the confirmation page. 

FDA/USDA ~~ August-Sept Alerts & Safety


Paradise Valley Market, Inc. (Carnival Supermarket) Recalls Ground Beef Productsdue To Possible E. Coli O157:H7 AdulterationThe Paradise Valley Market, Inc. (Carnival Supermarket), located at 870 3rd Avenue, Chula Vista, Calif., is voluntarily recalling approximately 35 pounds of ground beef products that may be adulterated with E. coli O157:H7.

09/07/2016 10:05 PM EDT

Cerritos, CA, United Exchange Corp. is voluntarily recalling the following lots of Family Care Eye Wash 4 oz due to microbial contamination. These products consist of a purified water solution.

09/07/2016 02:57 PM EDT

Island Soups Company, Inc. of Saint Albans, New York is recalling the following products because they have the potential to be contaminated with Clostridium botulinum, a bacterium which can cause life-threatening illness or death. Consumers are warned not to use these products.

09/06/2016 09:20 PM EDT

Westby Cooperative Creamery has issued a voluntary product retrieval notice on a specific, single lot of 4% cottage cheese; manufactured and packaged on August 17, distributed to retail stores, and possibly sold to consumers on or before August 26, 2016.

Snyder’s-Lance, Inc. is initiating a voluntary recall of Diamond of California Macadamia Nuts, distributed in retail stores nationwide, due to possible Salmonella contamination.
08/26/2016 05:18 PM EDT

Country Fresh, LLC. of Conroe, Texas, is recalling 30,000 cases of various fresh-cut vegetable products (product descriptions attached), because they have the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Although healthy individuals may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea, Listeria infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women.

Sentry Foods Recalls Frozen Chicken Entrées due To Possible Foreign Matter Contamination
Sentry Foods, a Tucker, Ga. establishment, is recalling approximately 21,570  pounds of frozen chicken entrées  that may be contaminated with extraneous materials, specifically glass or hard plastic.
08/24/2016 03:40 PM EDT

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and state and local officials are investigating an outbreak of hepatitis A illnesses linked to raw scallops.

Updated information is now available. A list of retail consignees has been posted for recall 068-2016, Santana’s Black Label Gourmet Beef Jerky Recalls Beef Jerky Products Produced Without Benefit of Inspection (Jul 29, 2016).

Panna Café Express To Go Inc. Recalls Various Meat and Poultry Products Produced Without Benefit of Inspection Panna Café Express To Go Inc., a North Miami Beach, Fla., establishment, is recalling approximately 1,951 pounds of various meat and poultry products that were produced without the benefit of federal inspection and used the USDA marks of inspection without authorization.

08/22/2016 11:03 AM EDT

Contact Lens Health Week begins today. If you use contact lens solutions that contain hydrogen peroxide, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is informing you that you must carefully read and follow directions for these products. Failure to read and follow directions and warnings can result in stinging, burning, and/or damage to your eyes.

08/22/2016 05:05 PM EDT

Sage Products announced today it is expanding its voluntary worldwide recall to include specific lots of impregnated cloth topical skin products at the distributor, healthcare facility, retail and consumer/user levels. The recall is being initiated due to potential product contamination with the bacteria, Burkholderia cepacia.

08/19/2016 09:08 PM EDT

In cooperation with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Honeywell is voluntarily recalling one production lot of 32-ounce bottles of Eyesaline Eyewash solution, which is used for emergency eye rinsing after an injury.

08/19/2016 04:40 PM EDT

Cambridge Farms, LLC of Lancaster, PA is recalling the below products because they have the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Although healthy individuals may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea, Listeria infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women.

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Nuclear catastrophe, our next president, and you


UCSLOGOAccidental nuclear war?
Not a joke.

But we’re working to vastly reduce the risks.

We’re urging President Obama to take missiles off hair-trigger alert.

Donate Now

In 1979, the United States almost launched a full-scale nuclear attack on the Soviet Union—because nuclear operators misunderstood that they were watching a training video instead of an actual attack.¹

In 1995, Russian radar misinterpreted a research rocket, and President Yeltsin began preparations to launch a retaliatory attack.¹

And in 2017, whoever is elected as our next president will still have hundreds of nuclear missiles on “hair-trigger alert”—ready to be launched in minutes—unless we succeed in convincing President Obama to change this dangerous policy

for the complete post please go to ucsusa.org

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